Machine for softening and sterilizing paper.



No. 834,488. PATENTED OCT. so, 1906.

j 0. E. POPE.

MACHINE FOR SOPTENING AND STERILIZING PAPER.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 26,1905.

liueiifir:

I To all whom it may concern.-

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES'E. POPE, OF SOUTH HADLEY, MASSACHUSETTS.

" MACHINEJ' FOR SOFTENING AND STERILIZING PAPER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 30, 1906.

' Application filed December 26,1905- Serial No. 293,191.

Be it known that I, CHARLES E. POPE, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of South Hadley, in the county of Hampshire and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain newand useful Improvements in Machines for Softening and Sterilizing Paper, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to a machine or apparatus for the conversion of ordinary, lowgrade, smooth, and more or less refractory paper to a paper having a quality, feeling, or texture of very soft character resembling muslin or other fine textile fabric and devoid of the brittle and harsh condition in which the paper is originally found and for also sterilizing and rendering the-paper entirely sanitary, the new product having especial desirability and availability as and or toilet purposes to serve as napkins and in some cases to serve as an inexpensive substitute for textlle fabric.

The invention consists in the combination or arrangement for coaction of successive means operable on paper substantially as hereinafter fully described, and set forth in the claims.

An object of the invention is to provide an apparatus which is entirely eflicient for the production of paper having the quality above indicated.

A further aim of the invention is to so organize the machine as to render it capable of performance of the primary object and with the inclusion of a comparatively few, simple, and inexpensively-constructed parts, the organized machine being operable to produce the paper of the kind required without the employment, so far as softening of the paper is concerned, of any chemical solutions or expensive agencies, although it is the purpose to employ in the bath, through which the paper is carried preparatory to craping it, a disinfectant or sterilizing solution of any simple or approved kindsuch, for instance, as a five-per-cent. solution of carbolic acid.

The improved machine is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which the figure is a vertical sectional view and partial perspective thereof. V

In the drawing, A represents a support for a su ply-roll of ordinary smooth paper I), whic 1 may be a tissue-paper or a paper considerably heavier than the ordinary tissue-paper.

partially submerged in the water in the tank,

and this roll C has on the endwise-extending journal thereof a driving-pulley d, around a which runs a belt f, driven from a pulley g on an overhead counter-shaft h, it being under stood that said latter shaft is driven by any suitable means, and the frictional contact between the rolls C and D causes a feed or pro gression of the paper in the manner shown.

E'represents a doctor or craping-blade, the *same being represented as in an upright position and ed ewise bearing against the forward face of t e roll D and is a common expedient for thecraping of the pa er, which by coming around the roll to sue blade is obstructed by the latter and diverted from contact on the roll and passes in a crinkled or craped condition into the endless carrierapron F, which conveys it to the drying action of the drums G and G These drums are journaled for rotation on horizontal axes and have at their ends spur gear-wheels i 'i, with which mesh small spur gears or pinions j j, affixed on short shafts or studs k k, and which have also thereon pulleysm m, and one of the stud-shafts k has an additional pulley n, around which runs a belt 0, driven by 'pulley p on the counter-shaft h, and a cross-belt q is in driving engagement around the pulleys mm, so that through these driving connections both drier-drums G and G are rotated in the same direction.

.9 8 represent carrier aprons or tapes coacting in an ordinary way with the drierdrums for keeping the craped paper in surface contact with the latter, whereby it may be quickly and effectually dried.

In advance of the drier-drums are axiallyhorizontal compression-rolls H H, one of which has on the extended journal thereof a driving-pulley t, around which runs abeltu,

driven by a ulley '1) on the overhead countershaft 11), which latter is understood as driven in any suitable manner. These rolls H II are so set in their bearings that they run in hard peripheral contact one against the other, so that the craped and dried paper being guided and advancing through'these rolls becomes decidedly compressed, flattening the surface of the paper and breaking down the fibers thereof. In addition to these 1 io rolls serving as compression-rolls either or both thereof may be embossed either with pebbling or with ribs and indentations in any lines or arrangement.

J J represent a set of calender-rolls axially horizontally mounted and running in surface contact forward of the compressingrolls, one of these calender-rolls having on its extended journal a pulley as, which is somewhat smaller than the pulley t on the compressing-roll H, and the driving-belt 1 runs around the calender-roll pulley and also around the counter-shaft pulley 2, which latter is of the same size as the counter-shaft pulley 1), so that by this driving connection, in which the pulley as is considerably smaller than the pulley t, the surface-speed of the calender-rolls is faster than the surface speed of the compressing-rolls and whereby a stretching action on the com ressed dry craped paper is accomplished etween the calender-rolls and the compressing-rolls, the provision of the tension-bar c in proximity to one of the calender-rolls and between it and the compression-rolls bein advantageous. The calender-rolls have the function 'not only of imparting the stretching action to the paper, but also of imparting thereto a final compression.

The paper after merging from the calender-rolls is wound upon a reel or take-up at K, which may be of any suitable character or construction and involves no invention in this case.

The paper introduced in plain smooth condition and subjected to the action of this machine acquires successively three distinct characters or qualities: first, that of ordinary craped paper; secondly, that of a paper in which the craping is not conspicuous and which is more or less pebbled or embossed and very much modified as to the character of the surface inequalities and also very much softer than the paper in the craped or first stage, and the paper has, thirdly, a very soft and muslin-like quality which is so highly desirable in the product and which results from the stretching and final compression in the calender-rolls of the craped paper, which is previously decidedly compressed before reaching the calender-rolls, and the means for compressing or compressing and embossing and breaking down of the fibers of the dried and harsh cra ed paper before the final stretching thereof is one which is considered of great practical importance in a machine in which this invention is embodied.

For the making of paper napkins the action of compressing the crape paper may be accompanied by a simultaneous embossing with pebbling or other ornamental configurations which will plainly show in the finallyfinished goods.

.means for drawing and I claim 1. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with means for supporting and guiding craped paper, of means for compressing the craped paper, and means for stretching the craped and compressed paper.

2. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with means for supporting and guiding craped paper, of means for compressing and also embossing the craped paper, and means for stretching the craped and" compressed and embossed paper.

3. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with means for supporting and guiding craped paper, of means for compressing the craped paper, means for stretching the compressed craped paper, and further and final means for again compressing the stretched compressed craped paper.

4. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with means for supporting and guiding craped paper, of rolls for compressing the craped paper, and means for rotating such rolls, a set of smooth-surfaced calenden'ng-rolls through which the compressed paper is passed, and means for imparting to said calendering-rolls faster surface speed than that of the compressing-rolls whereby the paper between the compressionrolls and said calender-rolls is stretched and whereby the so-stretched paper is finally compressed.

5. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with a support for a plain paper-supply, a bath or liquid-tank, uiding the paper through the liquid in the tank, crapmg means, and a drier to the action of which the paper is carried, of compressing-rolls through which the craped and dried aper is carried, and means in advance of t e compressing rolls for stretching the compressed craped paper.

6. In an apparatus of the character de scribed, the combination with a support for a plain-paper supply, a liquid-tank, a air of peripherally-adjacent feed-rolls, one o which is partially submerged in the tank, and a doctor or craping-blade coacting with the other of said feed-rolls, means for rotating said feed-rolls, a pair of drier-drums having spur gear-wheels at the ends thereof, shafts having pinions thereon which mesh with the drier-drum spur-gears, and pulleys on said shafts, a crossed belt running around said pulleys, and means for rotating one of said shafts, a carrier-apron located between the craping-blade and drier-drums, endless carrier aprons or tapes coacting with both the drier-drums, a pair of calender-rolls in advance of the compressin -rolls, a drivingshaft having pulleys, a pul ey on one of the compressing-rolls, and a smaller pulley on one of the calender-rolls, and belts runnirllfg around the driving-shaft pulleys and the d' 'ferent-sized pulleys on the compressing-r011,

ance of the compressing-rolls, through which the paper is passed and by which it is rawn at a s eed "faster than that of its assage through the compressing-rolls, where- 1 5 y the compressed craped aper is stretched. Signed by me at Springfie d, Massachusetts,

in presence of two subscribin Witnesses.

OHARL S E. POPE. Witnesses:

WM. S. BELLows, G. R; DRIscoLL. 

